Sinister Presence
by Art Writer III
Summary: Thirty years ago, a battle broke loose. Now everyone is preparing, not realizing the threat is close, very close. A sinister presence lives among them all and it's bigger than they could ever imagine.
1. Signs of a Problem

**Hello readers! I hope you are ready to read an adventure/mystery story. This story is part of a trilogy I have planned and I'm excited to see your reactions to it. This story takes the place of season 5. **

**Disclaimer: I do not own nor profit from Winx Club._  
_**

* * *

_Family, _

_I want to tell you (well, write you) that I have run away. I have caused so much trouble between everyone and can't face you guys anymore. I know you are wondering why I'm blaming myself for the trouble, but it all started when mom and dad returned to Magix__.__ I know you already know the story, but there is a lot more to it__.__ It was the end of the school year__…_

* * *

The sky was dark and everyone from Alfea and Red Fountain were in the quad, waiting for the ceremony to begin. Earlier in the year, when the Winx Club and the Specialist were in Gardenia, there was a battle. No one knew who they fought, all they saw was an army of witches, warlocks, and warriors come in from the woods. They were all wearing similar clothes and were young, so they were most likely from a school. They were well trained, though, unlike any of the schools in the Magic Dimension. They used techniques the specialists didn't recognize. The fairies were just getting the hang of their magic, they had no chance. The schools had to do something. If there was one thing they knew about the battle, was that it wasn't the last.

Ms. Faragonda was standing next to Saladin. They were in front of the doors to Alfea, discussing the ceremony that was about to take place.

"We need to be extra careful, Faragonda. Are you sure this ceremony is going to work?" Saladin asked with a stern tone, hiding the fear behind it.

"It's been done before, it's just a question of will the dragon be strong enough." Ms. Faragonda responded to him, wondering the same thing herself.

"It has to be," Saladin turns his attention to the woods, "we can't afford another attack like this. It puts us and the whole dimension in danger."

"I know that, Saladin, and we have to have faith in our students, especially the Winx."

He turns his attention back to her. "The Winx are not strong enough. These people have had _years_ of training, maybe even _decades_."

"The Winx have saved us in the past from many villains. They are capable of doing this."

"You, me, and Griffin could make the dragon ourselves. We have had much more experiences with our magic and know how to use them properly." He argues back, trying to get her to understand.

"Saladin," Faragonda starts, trying to choose her words carefully, "Griffin's school wasn't attacked. Who knows what will happen with Cloud Tower…or even if they will soon be involved."

Saladin looks at her, stunned by her thinking. "You think Cloud Tower could be part of this?"

As she was about to speak, an air craft carrying the Winx and Specialist landed near them. When they stepped out, the girls were all wearing white dresses, it was a symbol of the purity and the good of the people who fought. The guys were wearing their specialist uniforms and were walking the girls to the headmistress. All of the girls kissed the guys on the cheek and turned to her.

"I'm glad you're here girls." She said with a faint grin.

"What happened was just…horrible. You still don't know who they were?" Bloom asked.

The headmistress nods her head, "No, we just know that they are something to be watchful of."

"We'll do whatever we can to help." Flora said in her sweet voice, "How exactly do we perform this ceremony?"

"All you have to do is let the magic do what it wants." She said, looking the girls with kind eyes.

All of the girls start walking to the center of the quad, trying to figure out what Ms. Faragonda meant. "…let the magic do what it wants." Kept repeating in their heads. Did she mean to give it full control? Did they just have to guide it and it will know the rest? They all created a circle and held hands, knowing that their magic had to combine as one. They closed their eyes and just focused on letting the magic free. Everyone was quiet, all you could hear was the light wind. Feel the cool touch of it on their skin.

Some people watched the girls while others just looked down, thinking about the past events. After a minute of the Winx's meditation, their chests started to glow. It started as a faint glow and then grew into a bright, large glow. Orbs soon started floating from the girls and to the center of their circle. The orbs were all rotating counter clockwise and soon started slowly moving upward. The orbs were moving closer and closer together. They soon collided into one orb; one large, transparent orb of magic.

The magic was now free to do whatever it can. What the magic did was turn into a dragon. It first stretched to form the head and the tail. The head and tail soon became more detailed and larger. The mouth was soon noticeable, you could make out eyes, four feet started to form. Soon, the dragon was complete, it was flying around the sky. It started making little noises. Those noises started growing, louder and louder. It eventually let out a booming roar that shook everything. It was a magnificent looking dragon.

Transparent, you could see the magic moving through it. It was large and had a long, swinging tail. It was silent again, everyone just looked up at the creature. It soon went straight down through the ground, making that its home. They were depending on this dragon. This dragon was going to protect the schools, make sure there is enough time to prepare for any future attacks.

The Winx couldn't believe what had just happened. They exchanged looks and soon started looking for the guys. The guys were by the woods talking to Saladin. Saladin was discussing with them the plans for the up-coming school year.

"Listen, boys." Saladin said as he put both of his hands on his staff. He was stern with his voice, but also gentle in tone. "I have a feeling that this battle we had is just the beginning. You are all the best we have at Red Fountain. I would like it if you would all teach the following school year."

"Look, that's a huge honor, but we don't know _that_ much more than the newbies." Brandon protested.

"You won't be working alone." Saladin started explaining, "I am bringing in the best there is to work alongside you, and you'll learn a few new things, too."

Riven, crossing his arms, asked "Who would that be?"

"Me." They heard a voice answer in a British accent. They saw a tall, skinny woman in a black pant suit. She had pale skin and dark, blonde hair that was shoulder length. She had pale blue eyes that stood out. She stood by Saladin now, waiting for him to introduce her.

"Yes," he began, "This is Miss Sandra White. She has been trained by the top warriors at an elite fighting school and has been located in Australia working with an association from Magix. We are lucky to be able to have her here."

She sticks her hand out for the guys to shake. "It's actually Sondra." She corrects Saladin, "Which is what you can call me."

The specialist all shake her hand and introduce themselves. All of them were kind, Riven, on the other hand, made a comment with a snarky tone.

"I'm Riven and I find it hard to believe that you're the best warrior in the Magic Dimension."

Sondra looks at Riven with a tilted head and a smile, "You know, Riven, I've dealt with a lot of guys who said the same exact thing as you. Now, they're in physical therapy."

Sondra laughs and the rest of the specialist have a big grin on their face. They have never heard anyone say that with so much confidence to Riven.

Timmy breaks the laughter, "So, what school did you go to?"

"I went to Hillsdale Warrior Academy." She stated with pride, "Where even the weakest girl won't cry over a broken nail."

"I don't mean to be rude," Sky starts questioning, "but since when were their female warrior schools?"

Sondra is caught off guard by the question and turns her attention to Saladin. Saladin resists making eye contact with her, but eventually looks her straight in the eyes.

"You've never told them about other schools?" She asked.

"I have," Saladin started to explain, "I just never told them about female academies."

"Well, surely you've told them about academies that train boys and girls."

He looks back at the ground with little disappointment. He starts to raise his voice as he explains his view on the situation. "I am old fashion, Miss White. Red Fountain is an old school that has always been an all boy school and I feel it should stay that way. Not just for my school, either. I don't deny, though, that you are an amazing warrior."

"My views are different, Saladin." Sondra starts with a faint smile, "I believe that some traditions are meant to be changed and that those changed ones should be taught."

There is a moment of awkward silence and most of the tension is between Saladin and Sondra. Eventually the Winx come over and the tension disappears. They all start a conversation of getting to know each other and learning about Sondra. While they are all engaged in conversation, Ms. Faragonda pulls Saladin to the side to tell him something important. Something seemed to disturb her, something was wrong.

"Saladin," the headmistress said in a concerned voice, "did you see the dragon?"

"Of course I did. Is there something wrong?" He was growing concerned himself.

She starts to talk quieter, "It's stronger than we thought. We know Bloom has the Dragon Flame, but the rest of the girls aren't as strong."

"What are you saying, Faragonda?"

"I'm saying, there is something more to their magic. If this just started happening and we just had a battle…"

"Then they just might hurt us more than help us." Saladin concluded.

* * *

_Both of them thought something strange was going on; of course they turned out to be right. The situation was something dangerous, very dangerous. They could only trust people they knew, but even then, you can't fully trust anyone. Sooner…or later, they will do something you never expected. I mean, look at what happened now._

* * *

**That's the end of chapter one. This story will be updated weekly, every Monday starting today. If it wasn't clear, the italicized parts are part of a letter, who the writer is is a mystery. I would like to thank PierceTheVeils, my official beta reader for this story. I've asked others to look at it, too, and I thank them for their help. Pierce, though, has been the most hands on and I thank her for that. Now, don't be shy, write me a review or PM me your opinions, questions, or anything else you feel like sending. Have a wonderful day, night, or what ever time it is where you are.  
**


	2. New Year, New Crisis

**Hello, again, everyone. I am back with another chapter and this story is far from over. I would like to thank PierceTheVeils, DazzlerAngel, and Musa'sHeadphones for reviewing the first chapter. Also, thank you to Roxy Fan 4 Ever for letting me know what he liked and disliked. I hope you all enjoy this next chapter.**

* * *

_A new year, a new crisis. It seems to me that you battled some kind of villain every year. I don't know how you did it. I mean, dad was trained for that sort of thing, I understand that. A fairy…should only have to study and learn how to control their Winx. I haven't attended Alfea yet__,__ but that's the impression I get. This new year, though, you were a teacher. You were preparing for class…_

* * *

Mrs. Emerald, the Winx Club's co-teacher and mentor, was drawing on the board with a black, dry erase marker. Mrs. Emerald had brown, pixie-cut hair and was wearing a white button-down shirt, a purple-peplum jacket, and a matching pencil skirt. She had a small frame and was slightly shorter than the girls. That's why, to reach the top of the board, she had to go onto her tippy-toes to finish her drawing. When she was finished, she let out a sigh of relief. She had drawn a layout of an obstacle course she thought up the night before. She walked to the girls and crossed her arms, looking at the drawing.

"So, what do you think?" Mrs. Emerald asked them with a proud smile.

Stella tilted her head and looked at it for a bit. She eventually said, "I think you won't make it as an artist."

"No, Stella," Mrs. Emerald replies playfully, "what do you think of the obstacle course?"

All of the Winx are silent, trying to figure out what each obstacle was for.

Mrs. Emerald gets tired of waiting and walks back to the drawing, "Come on girls! The rings are for the fairies to practice flying. A hidden door so they can practice figuring out different ways to get through. The…"

"Are we getting a little ahead of ourselves?" Tecna interrupts. "I mean, we're talking about students who hardly know how to _use _their magic."

"Tecna's right." Flora says in a sweet voice, "We should have the first day be introductions."

Mrs. Emerald taps her foot as she thinks about it. She turns around and starts to wipe the board.

As she cleans the board, she answers, "You're…you're right. I'm just so used to the fairy college in Isis. I'll just follow your girls' lead."

They all agree and start to share introduction ideas. Stella suggested that the students take turns standing and saying their name and planet. Musa suggested they play **Two Truths and a Lie** with the students. They all pitched ideas and they would all turn them down.

Eventually, Bloom pitches an idea that they all agree on. She tells them about a name game she did every first day of school back on Earth. She told them the rules and examples of names people used in her old school. They all had fun discussing the game and eventually moved on to talking about other things for the students to do in class.

They discussed doing exercises like lifting an object, changing the size of an object, and even changing their hair color. They didn't get much time to discuss exercises, students started to walk in as they were talking. The students took their seats and the Winx and Mrs. Emerald all stood in a line.

"Good morning, class." Mrs. Emerald said with a bright smile, "I'm Mrs. Emerald and these are my fellow teachers."

One by one, they went down the line and introduced themselves to the students, not that they needed to. Many of the students were excited to have the members of the Winx Club as their teachers. They had big smiles and leaning closer to them to listen to every single word. There were some that didn't find it that exciting. They were just one of them, but they have had much more experience compared to them.

When they are all done with the introductions, Bloom starts to tell the class about the name game.

"Ok," Bloom starts saying to the class, "the first thing we are going to do is **The Silly Name Game**."

The class gives her a confused look and one student mumbles, "**The Silly Name Game**?"

"Yes," Bloom leans back on the desk, "it's a fun game I would play back on Earth to learn peoples' names. The rules are simple; you pick an adjective that begins with the first letter of your name that also describes your personality. For example, I would be Bubbly Bloom."

"That's it?" One of the students interrupted.

"No, there's more." Bloom continued, "As we go along, the next person has to repeat the names of the people that went before them."

Stella explains further, "Exactly! If I were to go after Bloom, I would say 'Hi, I'm Stylish Stella and this is Bubbly Bloom'."

All of the students nod and finally understand how to play the game.

Flora walks over to the first desk at the end of the first row. She taps on the desk as she says, "Why don't you go first, sweetie?"

The student looks up at her nervously and does as she says. "Uh…ok. Hi, everyone, I'm Kind Krystle."

Flora turns her attention to the next girl and the student knows it's her turn. "Hello, I'm Clever Claire and this is Kind Krystle."

One by one, the students play the game and the class soon moves on to exercises.

* * *

_Sounds like it was a fun class. I only played __**The Silly Name Game**__ in elementary school, though__.__ Dad had a "fun" day, too. Sondra being a mentor was very, hmm, interesting. She taught them many, many new techniques that were very advanced. But, the very first thing she taught them was something so simple. Ha...I do it as my work out every day, actually. I still find it funny to this day. Anyways, they were in the workout/classroom…_

* * *

All of The Specialist were in sweats and t-shirts instead of uniforms for their warm-up before class. Sondra, on the other hand, was in leggings and a racer-back tank top.

They were all doing the High Lunge yoga pose on their yoga mats. They had one, bent knee forward and the other leg straight. The straight leg was behind them and aligned with the bent knee. Sondra was having the easiest time with it, her hands pressing down on her knee, eyes closed, and taking deep, slow breaths. The Specialist, on the other hand, were struggling with the pose. Some of them had their hands flat on the ground; others were doing it perfectly, but were groaning in pain.

Without opening her eyes, she says, "Brandon, do you feel the muscles in your legs stretching?"

"I'm feeling something." He replies in agony.

"Ok, boys," she claps, "now the Standing Tree."

They all are relieved to get out of the High Lunge and on to their feet.

"Now," She starts directing them, "Take deep breaths in as you move your hands in front of your chest. Then, raise your hands above your head and reach for the sky. Slowly raise one leg and rest your foot on the inside of the opposite leg."

They all do as she says and The Specialist are, once again, struggling with a yoga pose. Timmy can't keep his leg up for five seconds, Riven fell trying to catch his balance, Brandon couldn't keep steady, Sky had to hold his leg up, but Helia seemed to be as cool as a cucumber.

Riven notices this and whispers to him, "How are you having such an easy time?"

"I am one who knows how to stay in a calm state of mind, meditate, and stay relaxed."

Riven looks at him questionably, "Really?"

"No," Helia states plainly, "I'm focusing on not falling."

Riven stands back up and says, "Oh…that makes sense."

Sondra stops their conversation, "Ok, you all can release from the pose. We are done."

All of them sigh and fall back on their yoga mats. They all take bliss in it all being over. They had spent the past half-an-hour doing yoga and they never realized how hard it was.

"It's finally over!" Brandon exclaimed with joy.

"Yeah," Sondra said before taking a drink of water. "In five minutes you'll have to do it again."

Sky shot right up and said, "Wait, again?"

Sondra nods, "You boys do realize you have to teach yoga to multiple classes today, don't you? From 9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m."

"Seven hours of yoga!" Riven exclaimed, surprised at the fact.

"No, not exactly." Sondra replies with a small laugh. "You do get an hour for lunch and five minutes between each class." She turns her head towards the door. She sees the first freshmen class of the day enter the room. "Speaking of class, we have one starting right now."

Sondra walks over to the group of students and instructs them to get their yoga mats. The students do as she says and The Specialist stand up, ready to teach the class.

* * *

_I have to be honest; I would have paid to witness that. It's the little moments of humor in life, I appreciate. Especially__,__ when dealing with something traumatic. __You have to find the little moments of humor. Ahem, back to the story, when you were both teaching…_

* * *

Ms. Faragonda was sitting at her desk with Ms. Griselda sitting across. They were having a conference with Saladin. They were using a communicator that let them see him as a hologram. The hologram made him appear even smaller, the height of a pencil. The hologram was a little fuzzy and made him appear green.

They had been talking for the past hour about strategies and the battle that had taken place last year. They were trying to figure out who they had fought. There were so many people, it was three times the size of Alfea and Red Fountain combined. There are very few schools in the Magic Dimension that big, but those few schools don't even teach witches or warlocks. One of the schools teach warriors, but their uniforms aren't black. There were so many possibilities to who the attackers were.

"It has got to be some type of school!" Saladin exclaimed. He banged his staff on the ground and created a small _thump_ on the communicator.

"Saladin, they were too powerful to be a school." Ms. Faragonda explained, "There are no schools with those uniforms nor that advanced in the Magic Dimension."

"Who said they were from the Magic Dimension?" Saladin objected, "Who said they weren't an underground school?"

Ms. Griselda joins in on the conversation, "It's not a matter of who they are; we need to focus on preparing our students."

Saladin sighs and speaks in a calm tone, "I agree, which brings me to a serious question of mine. Do we believe the Winx Club can help us?"

Ms. Faragonda and Ms. Griselda are stunned by his question. Ms. Faragonda pushes up her glasses, "Of course we do. What will make you question them?"

"You said it yourself," Saladin starts stating, "the girls, other than Bloom, have not been that strong. We just had a battle last school year; we just noticed their new strength around the same time. Whoever we fought is going to come back if the Winx are who they want."

"If we don't have them train students, than what will they do? Prepare themselves? Go on their normal, everyday routine?" Ms. Faragonda questioned him.

Saladin doesn't waste time when replying, "They should go into hiding. They should go somewhere where they can be safe."

"They have battled many people who were after them." Ms. Griselda mentions, "What's different with this time?"

Saladin takes a deep breath. "There is something wrong. I have this feeling that whoever they were, school or no school, they will do whatever they can to get what they want. We are dealing with something much out of our control."

The headmistress thinks about his reaction for a bit. "Even if we were to tell them to hide, they are stubborn girls, they would do whatever they can _not_ to hide."

"Ms. Faragonda…"Saladin starts frustrated.

Ms. Faragonda interrupts, "We'll talk about it later, Saladin."

She turns off the communicator and is quiet. She looks Ms. Griselda in the eyes and her eyes show concern. Saladin's behavior, every time they spoke, seemed to become stranger and stranger. He insisted that it was a school and insisted that the Winx Club not teach. He, also, seemed to be worried more and more of the situation…

* * *

…_and __I don't blame him for it. The building anticipation for the next fight was eating at him. Knowing what's going on doesn't help at all, I'll tell you that. They are all waiting for the next fight, the next…bad thing to happen. I've always heard you talk about the villains you fought and…it just makes me nervous to attend. Then again, this past summer could have been prevented if it weren't for me. You know, I learned that it's true what they say, "When it rains, it pours." That's what the headmistress and dean of discipline was worried about. That's why they jumped when there was a knock on the door. _

* * *

**I hope you enjoyed this chapter, especially the yoga scene. Again, don't be afraid to review this story in either the box below or in a PM. You can tell me what you liked, disliked, or who you think the letter writer is. Have a great day.  
**


	3. Learning

That's why they jump when there's a knock at the door. They look at each other and are, for an unknown reason, nervous to let the person in. They have had no one come to the office all day, not even the teachers came by. They could be nervous that the leader of the attack was there. That doesn't make sense, though. Why would the leader suddenly take a calm approach to the situation?

Reluctantly, the headmistress says, "Come in."

The door creaks open and in walks Roxy with her suitcases behind her. Her suitcases were piled messily behind her; some of the bags looking as if they were about to fall. This is the first time Roxy has attended a boarding school and wasn't sure how many suitcases to bring. She was also in a rush to find Ms. Faragonda.

"How may I help you, Roxy?" Ms. Faragonda asked her in a kind voice.

"I need to sign-in." She explains, "I would have been here sooner, but I went to visit Magix and lost track of time."

Ms. Faragonda nods, "Oh, Ms. Griselda will sign you in, show you your room, and tell you everything you need to know."

As Ms. Faragonda is speaking, Ms. Griselda grabs her pen and clipboard. She starts searching through the list of names to find Rocky's. When she finds it, she states, "Princess Roxy of Tir na nOg. You're the only name I don't have checked off on my list. Next time, you should arrive on time."

"Sorry, Ms. Griselda."

"Now, I need to know if you have a pet." Ms. Griselda informs her.

Right after she says that, Artu pokes his head in the doorway. Roxy didn't close the door and Artu got curious when Ms. Griselda spoke of pets. Ms. Griselda sees Artu and checks off _yes _on her clipboard.

Both her and Roxy walk out of the room and to her dorm room. Roxy grabs all of her bags and tries to balance them on the largest suitcase. Some things had straps, so she could place them on her shoulders. Everything else had either wheels or balanced on the things with wheels. As they walk, Ms. Griselda continues to ask her questions and lectures her of the rules. Ms. Faragonda sits at her desk for a bit longer and soon stands up. She walks over to the large window in her office and looks out to the woods. She is wondering how Cloud Tower could be involved.

* * *

_CT was never attacked when the battle happened. Of course, you learned that already, but you don't know the whole situation. You probably wouldn't know about it if I didn't run away. Run away…I'm running away from everyone. You, dad, my sister, my aunts and uncles, everyone I know. Hmm…Ms. Griffin probably would have never known how bad this battle was if it weren't for two students._

* * *

Ms. Griffin was walking the hall of her school on her way back to her office. The halls were silent because everyone was in their rooms. The only sound she could hear was the _click clack _of her heels on the ground. She soon hears two students talking in the hall. She doesn't think much of it, her students would use the day to talk rather than get their rooms ready. She paid no attention to them until she heard the word _battle_. That's when she got interested in their conversation.

"What are you two talking about?" Ms. Griffin asks now facing them, "Are you two already planning something evil?"

"No, Ms. Griffin." The red haired student answers, "We're talking about the battle that happened last year."

Ms. Griffin snorts at the girls, "Battle, where did you hear about a battle?"

"We overheard a few students talking about it." The other student answers, "They were talking about some kind of huge battle at Alfea and Red Fountain."

Ms. Griffin grows a look of concern. How could they have learned about the battle? The school wasn't involved with it and she was told not to get involved, that it was not that bad. Now that her students know about it, she needs to prepare them, too.

Ms. Griffin commands, "Go back to your dorm room and talk about spells and potions instead of battles."

She turns around and goes to her office. She must contact Ms. Faragonda immediately. She needs to know why she shouldn't get involved. Ms. Griffin quickly enters the room, walks over to her desk, takes a seat, and moves her communicator to the front of her. She punched in a number and waited for Ms. Faragonda to answer. When she answered, a hologram of her popped up with a _boop_.

"Hello, Griffin."

"Hello, Faragonda." Ms. Griffin said, "Still trying to figure out who attacked you last year?"

"Yes we are." She states plainly, "Why do you ask?"

Ms. Griffin leans in closer to the communicator, "I overheard two students talking in the hall about it. I think it's time that I get involved."

"You weren't attacked." Ms. Faragonda explains, "We don't want to involve you and your school. It's nothing for you to worry about."

"I could help you fight back." Ms. Griffin objects, "If they are a _truly_ evil force, than we all need to protect each other."

"I'm sorry, Griffin, I do _not _feel that you should be involved. We'll have to talk about it more later."

Ms. Griffin ends the call and tries to think of the real reason Ms. Faragonda doesn't want her help.

* * *

_To be honest, I would have done exactly what Ms. Faragonda did. At a time like that, you shouldn't trust the people who were safe, you don't trust them. Then again, what do I know? I ran away from my problems instead of facing the consequences__.__ I must be a disappointment to you all, now. I…I…it's a good thing I'm not doing this face to face. Seeing you frown at me, thinking about how stupid I was. Sorry, as Ms. Griffin was trying to figure out everything, my father was getting to know Sondra better._

* * *

All of The Specialist and Sondra were sitting at a table in the cafeteria eating lunch. The Specialist were tired and sore from the classes they had taught. Many of them didn't want to eat, but they needed to in order to get more energy. Sondra, on the other hand, was happy to finally sit down and eat. She was used to the long hours and stretching of the muscles. She had trained at a female warrior school until she graduated, taught there herself for five years, and then worked for a Magix agency. She had to be in the best shape to do all of that and not be tired and sore every night.

When she was about to take a bite of her sandwich, Sky asked her, "So, why were you in Australia?"

"Ah," Sondra says, lowering her food. "Australia. Well, I worked for the E.O.E.V., Elimination of Escaped Villains. When I was in Australia, we were trying to track down an escaped villain from the Magix prison. I was located there for three years and the E.O.E.V. are still looking for him."

"Really?" Brandon commented.

"Yep, anything else you would like to know?" She takes a bite of her sandwich.

Riven decides to ask, "What made you decide to be a warrior and not train fairies or witches?"

She smiles, not showing her teeth, at Riven. She knows exactly why he asked. "Well, I didn't really have a choice of training a fairy or witch instead of people like you. When you don't have magic yourself, it wouldn't be wise. Unless, of course, I were given magic."

"Wait," Helia questions, "you can't use any kind of magic?"

"Nope," Sondra says, "like I said, unless I'm given magic, I can't do magic. It's not rare for a person to be born without magic with parents who _do_ have magic."

"It's true." Timmy interjects, "One in every six people who have magical parents are born without magic."

"Exactly Timmy," She takes a drink of her water. "I was told that it has to do with destiny and your past life. Zenith, though, is trying to figure out if it has to do with genes."

They are all quiet for a bit and go back to eating. They had never learned about those things, ever. They didn't know about the study nor heard of the E.O.E.V.

* * *

_A lot of people never heard of E.O.E.V. Today, they don't exist anymore. They were supposed to be the new…I'm getting ahead of myself. It's bigger than anyone can ever imagine and takes a lot of explaining. We don't even fully understand a thing on such a big scale. To continue, mom was eating with my aunts__…_

* * *

In the cafeteria, they were being served homemade beef stew. When they all got their lunch and drinks, they found seats near the entrance. They sat down and started talking about how their first few classes went. They were laughing about some of the silly names people used and chatted about how different Mrs. Emerald was compared to them. Eventually, they see Roxy looking for a seat. They call her over to sit with them with a friendly wave.

"Roxy, how's your first day so far?" Musa asks her.

"It's going good." She answers. "I signed-in late, so I missed my first few classes."

"Yeah, the morning seemed to go by fast." Bloom comments.

Flora suggests, "It's probably because we actually had classes. We usually have the whole day to settle into our rooms."

"Yeah, you're…" Bloom starts saying, only to be cut off by Ms. Faragonda. Ms. Faragonda and Ms. Griselda were up on the high balcony watching over everyone. It was time for Ms. Faragonda to make her lunch time speech on the first day.

"Hello, everyone," She started, "I hope you are having a wonderful first day. As you all know, we had a battle last school year. Usually, at the beginning of the school year, we have a ball…" she is quiet for a moment, rethinking her decision. "But due to our circumstances…I have decided to cancel it. We will continue our other celebrations through-out the year, but I feel that it is needed to be canceled. We all know what the Trix tried years ago during the ball and I don't want something like that happening again. Have a great rest of the day and my office is always open."

When she was done speaking, a lot of students started talking about the new information for the school year. Many weren't happy about the ball being canceled. The ball was the thing everyone looked forward to at the beginning of every school year. For the rest of the lunch period, that's all anyone could talk about. Whether it was about past experiences at the ball or what they thought it would be like, no one stopped talking about it.

* * *

_Though the balls are memorable, and trust me, they are, that is the least of their worries. Ms. Faragonda didn't tell them what the circumstances were. Many…many fairies and warriors were lost because of that battle. I'm just glad you and dad weren't at those schools that year. I hate to think of what could've happened to you. _


	4. Mentors Meet

**Phew, this story is fresh from the editing oven. I had such a hard time with this chapter and I don't know why. I still got it updated on Monday, though. *High fives self* I hope you do like it and if you don't, I'll make it up to you in chapter 5. Enough about my troubles, on with the story.  
**

* * *

_Ok, I know this thing is evil, but they had a good strategy. For weeks, they stayed silent, which built up the anticipation and fear. When so much of that builds up, everyone examines every little thing and overlook the obvious or don't think much of them__.__ For example… _

* * *

Sondra is walking down the corridor filled with doors to different dorm rooms. She soon reaches a point where a wide stairway and sitting areas on each side of it are seen. She was going to head down the stairs when her cell phone rings. She looks at the caller ID and looks to make sure no one is around.

"Hello." She says into the phone.

On the other end, the caller is ranting and complaining in response. She has to pull the phone away from her ear, they're so loud.

"Will you calm down?"

She rolls her eyes as she walks over to one of the seats. Her caller refuses to listen and it just angers her. The person goes on and on for multiple minutes and she gets fed up with it.

Sondra has an irritated tone when she is finally able to speak over him. "I know you've been waiting for weeks."

She closes her eyes and takes a deep breathe. "I can't make it if you don't have all of the things I need! I agree…we need to hurry up, _but_ we can't rush this thing!"

In her peripheral vision, she sees Timmy walking down the hall.

She ends the call quickly and in a calmer tone. "We'll speak soon. Bye."

Sondra hangs up, stands up, and straightens the creases on her jeans. She walks over to Timmy and they strike up a conversation.

"Hey, uh…is everything ok?" He questions her.

She sighs, "Yeah, it's just my little brother."

"What's wrong with you and your brother?"

Sondra laughs, "Our mum's birthday is coming up and he wants me to make her favorite cake. I can't make the cake if he doesn't get me the ingredients."

Timmy nods, "Hmm…you know, they had a breakthrough in that study about genes and people born without magic."

"Really?" She smiles, "What's the breakthrough?"

They both start heading down the stairs as they continue talking.

"Well," he adjusts his glasses. "Dr. Donavon discovered that the part of the gene that contains the magic abilities of a person is pure 100% magic. A parent with magic has that while the parent without magic doesn't. When the parents produce offspring, the part that is supposed to contain their magic abilities is either non-existent or bit by bit of it dissolves as the person ages and then becomes non-existent right before puberty. It has..."

"That's interesting," Sondra starts, "I would love to hear more, but I have to go get my lunch from Magix. Why not tell me more over tea tomorrow? We can discuss the study."

"Uh…yeah, sure."

"Great!" She has a bright smile.

Sondra waves _bye_ and starts leaving. Timmy waves back, but he found that she was acting kind of strange today. During the phone call, she wasn't her usual self. She wouldn't get upset over cake and wouldn't get irritated so quickly, especially if it was family. Something just didn't add up.

* * *

_And strange it is, I agree. Uncle Timmy was able to sense this strange occurrence, but still didn't think much of it. If he would have known this behavior would go on all day, he probably would have kept an eye on her in the future__.__ Especially__,__ after viewing her actions in Magix. _

* * *

Mrs. Emerald was walking along the many stores in Magix. She is trying to find a good place to pick up her lunch. She was trying to find a vegan restaurant when she gets distracted by the store _Magic Creations_. She is intrigued by the look and aura of the store and decides to enter. A bell _dings_ and she notices that the place is small compared to the amount of objects inside. It was filled with sage, salts, dream catchers, and more. She walks over to the section filled with crystals and rocks. It wasn't long until a woman walks up to her.

"Excuse me," the woman starts, "are you Mrs. Emerald?"

"Yes, who might you be?" She questions.

"I'm Sondra," she holds out her hand. "The new teacher at Red Fountain."

"Oh," Mrs. Emerald shakes her hand. "I'm the same position at Alfea. Have we met before?"

"Not officially, but my co-teachers date the Winx Club. Plus, you have an Alfea pin."

Mrs. Emerald looks down at the gold pin. Engraved on it is _Mrs. A. Emerald, Alfea Teacher_.

"That explains it." Mrs. Emerald chuckles. "You can call me Ashton, though."

"So, Ashton," Sondra interrogates, "what are you doing in this store? You're not a witch, are you?"

Mrs. Emerald laughs, "No, no, I was just curious and wanted to look around. Is this a store for witches only?"

"Oh, no." Sondra laughs, "I have no powers at all and I shop here. It's just…most of the customers at this store are witches."

There is an awkward pause. Sondra picks at her sleeve and Mrs. Emerald looks around nervously.

"Um…what are those rocks good for?"

Sondra looks down at the bags in her hand. "These white rocks are perfect for meditating. They keep the positive in and negative out. If they are smooth then they work even better."

"I'll have to get some later. Unfortunately, I have to go eat. I'll see you around."

They wave and they both have a smile. Sondra, though, gets an angry look across her face once Mrs. Emerald is completely gone. She goes back to looking around the store, heading to the candle section next. By the candles, a woman with dark, purple hair scans Sondra's posture. She was wearing all black clothing and had a silver nose ring. They both have the same look on their faces.

As she examines a black candle, the woman asks, "Something wrong?"

"Nothing." Sondra answers plainly. "Just another annoying pixie to deal with."

* * *

_Sondra is defiantly starting to show her true self. Saladin has been seeing it for weeks now, though. She is hiding it sloppily__.__ At this point, she is probably thinking she can get away with anything she is planning__.__ As shown when she misses another meeting with Saladin. _

* * *

Saladin was pacing around his office. He was growing impatient waiting for Sondra to come. When he hears the door open, he hopes it's her. Instead, it was Codatorta. He was stern as he walked over to Saladin.

"Did you find her?" Saladin questions.

"No," He answers. "I searched the whole school. Timmy said that she went to Magix for lunch."

Saladin huffs, "Argh…this is the fourth time she has not shown up to our meeting."

"I understand she is a talented warrior, but is she worth the trouble?" Codatorta crosses his arms.

Saladin thinks about it for a bit. Having her teach at the school is very beneficial, but he has never had so much trouble with a trainer.

"We must do whatever we can to survive this battle."

"We can't survive the battle if she doesn't strategize!" Codatorta snaps.

"I know, Codatorta!" He sighs, "At this point…I don't know what to think of our situation with her. It's not just our meetings she's missing, you know. She missed her lesson on dragon training, missed an all teachers meeting, and missed who knows what else."

"Saladin, I know this school means a lot to you. You'll do anything you can to keep everyone here safe. But, you're not going to accomplish anything by keeping her here!"

"If we don't keep her here, this school will be finished!"

They are both silent, realizing that this is the first they have yelled at each other. Codatorta turns around to leave. When he is in the door way, Saladin speaks.

"I have put my blood, sweat, and tears into this school. I'm not going to let one female warrior destroy it."

* * *

_I admire Saladin's passion for the school. I wish I could have that much passion in something. The rest of the day goes by without any more added issues. The tensions are still building, though. Even the strongest of relationships can be broken by the sharpest knife. It's…wait, another issue was brought up. It was night time at Alfea…_

* * *

Some students were still roaming the halls. They were all heading to bed, talking with friends, going to the library to study, and many other reasons. Flora was one of them. She was poking her head into every room, knocking on every door, searching the place high and low. She was looking for someone, a friend. Eventually, she got to Ms. Faragonda's office.

She knocks on the door and hears a faint "Come in."

Flora walks in and sees Ms. Faragonda sitting at her desk. She walks over to stand in front of the headmistress's desk. She cuffs her hands together and they are hanging at her sides.

"How may I help you, Flora?" The headmistress looks over her glasses.

"I was wondering if you've seen Mirta. I've been looking all over for her."

Ms. Faragonda becomes silent and looks down. Her thumb rubs over her other thumb nervously as she looks back up at the fairy.

"Flora…you haven't heard?"

"Haven't heard what?"

Ms. Faragonda takes deep breathe. "Mirta's gone."

* * *

**Wait, what! Mirta's gone? What, how, when, and why? Well, you'll find out soon.  
**

**I just wanted to take the time to thank two people. First, a thanks to cybercorpsesnake for being my newest reviewer. They have been giving me their opinions on this story and I appreciate it. Second, a thank you to PierceTheVeils for helping me find out the main issue with this chapter. **

**I, also, wanted to recommend two of her stories. "Out of the Darkness" is a wonderful story written by her and her collaborator SME (StrangeMindEnigma). Another great story is "A New Reality", a Winx Club season one rewrite. It is another collaboration that includes PTV and TDUAK (To die upon a kiss).  
**

**Again, don't be shy about leaving a review or PM. I would love to hear your thoughts on this story and how it's progressing. I can't wait for you all to read chapter 5, but until then, enjoy this one.**


	5. Twist

"Mirta's gone."

Flora's eyes widen from the news. Her legs feel like heated gelatin, her hands feel like bricks, and burning forms in her eyes.

She soon feels them cool from tears forming. She tries to make sure they don't fall and for some time, they don't.

She can't comprehend how such a nice, sweet person could be...gone.

How…why did she never hear about this? They were friends and she never knew.

She didn't get to say goodbye.

"Is it…because of the battle?" Flora finally chokes out after, what feels like, forever.

Ms. Faragonda gets a look of sadness upon her face. "Wha…no, no, dear. That's not at all what I meant. She dropped out of Alfea last year, right after you girls left for Gardenia. I'm sorry for you to have such a horrid thought."

Relief falls over Flora, but the tears still try to fall. She prevents them from falling. She will not cry in front of the headmistress. With how bad the battle was, she had jumped to conclusion.

"No, it…it was my fault to assume. Did she…um…" She thinks about her words. "Ever tell you why?"

She nods her head, "She didn't go into great detail. She just said that she felt like it was time to leave."

Flora's lips quiver. "Do you know if she went back to…Cloud Tower?"

"I'm not sure where she went."

They are both quiet for a bit.

The nature fairy starts leaving, but stops when Ms. Faragonda speaks again. She does not turn back around.

"She just, probably, needs to find herself. I wouldn't worry, too much about it. These things happen."

She nods her head, the tears start falling. They're cool, like ice water "Okay. Have a good night, Ms. F."

"You as well, Miss Flora. Try not to worry about it, okay."

Flora walks out of the office and heads back to her dorm room. She keeps her head down as the tears fall faster.

When she opens the door, she sees everyone sitting on the couches and floor. They all had their pajamas on and were talking about the day, like they did every night.

They all notice her walk in, but only Aisha notices her red eyes.

"Is everything ok, Flora?" Aisha questions her.

Flora shakes her head, "I found out that Mirta's gone."

They all share gasps and surprised glances.

"Since when?" Stella asks. "I never heard that!"

Flora sighs, "She, I guess, decided to drop out after we…we left for Gardenia. She's been gone for a…whole year, now."

Her tears fall even faster now. She turns around. "She has been…gone this whole time and…and we never even noticed."

"How did we not hear of this sooner?" Tecna wonders.

"I don't know." Musa begins, "But, as far as I knew, she loved it here. Why would she leave without saying goodbye?"

"I don't know, maybe…" One fairy starts saying before being interrupted.

Bloom stands up, "Maybe we'll be able to figure it out in the morning. Night, girls."

With that, she heads to her dorm room to end the night. Eventually, everyone else follows, unsatisfied.

* * *

_Why would anyone want to leave Alfea? Unless, she decided to go back to Cloud Tower. That's strange, though. Well, it's a strange year, come to think of it. This is the first year __ever__ that you all were aware of a villain and never actually fought them__,__ yet. Yes, the villain did attack the two schools, but your Winx Club and my dad and uncles never fought them. As if things aren't odd enough._

_To get back on track, it's kind of funny how relationships can be broken easily. If there is something strong enough to crush them, of course. You see a relationship struggling in the next day. It's not that they don't love each other, but stress can put a wedge between couples. It, also, doesn't help if the stress seems to be one sided, even if it's not._

* * *

Timmy is walking down one of the many hallways of Red Fountain. He is on his way to meet Sondra to discuss the study. As he is walking, he is playing a game on his phone. He doesn't pay much attention to his surroundings until he hears someone walk past him. When he looks up, he sees it's Sondra.

"Hey." He says. She turns around and he sees her massaging her left hand. She has gloves on, so he can't tell if it's bruised. Did she hurt it somehow?

"Hello Timmy, where are you headed off to?" Sondra questions.

He is baffled, "Well…uh…we, we were supposed to meet for tea."

She listens partially as she finds a tight muscle. She cringes when she tries to relax it. "With who?"

"You." He answers, confused. Did she really forget?

"Me?" Sondra stops massaging and looks up at him. Her eyes widen when the memory hits her. "Oh, I didn't say today. I have to teach hand-to-hand combat. You must have misunderstood, I said Sunday, which is tomorrow."

"Uh…" Timmy thinks, "We can meet tomorrow, yeah. Sorry, for the miscommunication."

She smiles, "Great, see you then."

She leaves instantly and he is left to comprehend what had just happened. Timmy was confused; he usually had a good memory for these things. Maybe he was reading too much into it. Maybe he did hear wrong.

He continues walking the same direction he was before and soon arrives at an open door. It was one of the gym rooms. He hears grunting and fighting going on and decides to peek in.

It was Sky and Brandon, practicing their hand-to-hand combat. It was just the two of them.

They were on a red mat with the school logo on it. They were both figuring out their next move, wanting to know what will hurt their opponent, but not wanting to majorly hurt each other.

Timmy gets a sad look upon his face. Fighting seemed to come so easily for them.

Brandon makes a move, getting Sky in a head lock. That's when he looks over at Timmy.

The specialist is surprised to see his friend there. "Hey, Timmy."

Brandon is out of breath; they must have been fighting for a while.

"Wait. Don't yo…whoa!" Sky was able to kick the back of Brandon's leg, causing him to fall to the ground.

Sky straightens up and dusts off his shirt. His sweat defiantly matted his hair; same with Brandon. They are both red in the face and their muscles are bulging from their practicing.

Sky finally says, "What's up, Tim?"

"Eh…nothing much."

"Oh." Sky nods. He holds his arm out and helps Brandon up.

They both walk over to him. "Don't you have that…tea thing with Sondra?" Brandon wheezed.

"I did." Timmy explains, "She forgot she had to teach a class today, so it's tomorrow instead."

They both nod. Brandon walks over to the bench area and takes a drink of water.

Between gulps of water, he says, "You know, that Sondra is a wonderful teacher. At first I thought that yoga stuff was stupid."

"Considering this is a warrior school." Sky chimes in.

"Exactly," Brandon continues, "but, shockingly, it helps with the hand-to-hand combat. I think this is the first Sky has ever beaten me. Well, you know, without letting him win."

Brandon smirks and Sky rolls his eyes.

"Yeah, whatever. Anyway, I have to go call Bloom. We haven't talked in a while."

Sky walks out of the room, leaving Brandon and Timmy alone. Brandon sits on the bench and wraps his hands with a white cotton wrap. He pulls out a punching bag out onto the mat and starts punching. Timmy shows no interest in joining in.

They are both quiet for a bit until Timmy asks Brandon a question.

"How is the wedding planning going with you and Stella?"

Brandon stops punching for a minute. "Well…it's going. It's just really stressful." He promptly goes back to punching.

"Planning a wedding is going to be stressful." Timmy adds, wondering whether or not to drop the subject.

"Yeah, I know. Stella just adds more stress, though. She is…planning the big event to be in 5 months."

Timmy's jaw drops. "5 months!"

"See?" Brandon wipes his brow. "I keep trying to convince her to wait until were done with Alfea and Red Fountain. I hate the long wait, _but _we will be entering a new stage in our lives, we will be officially done with school, and we will be more focused on our relationship…Solaria…starting a family."

There is another moment of silence.

"I, uh." Timmy stutters, "I never knew you thought about all of that."

"Yeah," Brandon laughs.

He stops the punching bag from swinging. As he holds it, he stares at it for a minute. Timmy could tell that he was thinking about everything and taking it all seriously.

He doesn't remember seeing this side of Brandon before.

Brandon clears his throat. "Neither did I."

* * *

_He actually surprised me, too. I'm told, when he was younger, he was always the carefree guy, easy-going with all aspects of life. The rest of the day is easy going, too. For the most part__._

_Around dinner time, though, Sondra gets a mysterious stomach ache. She leaves everyone during dinner and ends the night early, according to most accounts. _

_From what I heard, though, this is what really happened. _

* * *

Sondra walks into her room. She was staying in an empty dorm room at Red Fountain. She filled the place with books and papers.

She, of course, had an empty space for her work outs. She kicks off her shoes and locks her door.

She walks to the middle and focuses on a spell in her head. Eventually, a portal opens in front of her. It was outlined in shadow. She could see the inside of her house.

She starts to walk in until she suddenly halts. She almost forgot a little, silver object.

Sondra looks over at her desk chair and walks over to it. She flips it upside down and stares at a key taped to one of the legs. She rips it off, flips back over the chair, and walks through the portal.

She enters a room that is very dark. She turns on a light and can finally see. She walks down the hallway she is in and when she reaches a door at the end of the hall, she enters it.

The room she enters is very small, the size of a large closet.

There are four portraits, two on the right wall and two on the left wall. In front of her is a table with four different cloths on it. The order of the cloth colors are green, white, blue, and red. There are objects on each of the cloths, including pictures, candles, small books, and miniature dragon statues. Another door is between the table and portraits on the left.

She ignores everything in that room and stands in front of the other door. Sondra takes out her key and unlocks it. She enters a pitch black room. She steps to the side and flicks on the lights. All along the walls were books, ingredients for potions, and many other things a witch would need.

She sees someone in the center of the room. It was a man with a dark complexion. He had brown eyes and dark brown hair, it could be mistaken for black. His hair was short and he was, roughly, the same height as Sondra. He was in all black clothes and wearing heavy boots. He walked over to her, slowly.

"Welcome back, Sondra." He had a crooked smile.

She smiles back, it isn't a sincere "Nice to see you again, Tamal. Did you get the stuff?"

"On the table." He uses his head to show her which one.

"Great." She looks over at the table and walks over. She starts picking up the ingredients and examines them. A bright smile comes across her face as she looks closely at a vial filled with liquid.

Tamal breaks the silence, "Mind telling me what the ingredients are for?"

"I can." She says grabbing a mortar and pestle. She grabs five dry leaves and puts them in the mortar.

"The Etidorhpa leaves are from the Etidorhpa plant. The plant is said to bring you love, though it's only a myth." She takes the pestle and starts crushing the leaves. "It is true, but only when you take the leaves, dry them, and crush them. Everyone knows why to dry and crush them. The Etidorhpa leaves turn into liquid when they are crushed. For some reason, when they dry, instead of all of the moisture leaving the leaves, the molecules just squish together. Then, when you have the liquid, it lets out this…aroma…a hidden aroma that causes whoever smells to become…interested in you."

"Then what's the vial for?" He asks.

She grabs the vial of clear liquid and _pops _the cork out.

As she pours the contents into the mortar, she explains, "The smell that causes the love is hidden, it appeals to whoever smells it and has them smell whatever appeases them. There is a second smell, though, that, unless you mix this content of dissolved sugars and spices, over powers it. Now, I don't think they will be interested if I smell of rotten eggs. Don't you think so?"

Sondra laughs and mixes the two liquids together. She takes the liquid in the mortar and pours it into an empty perfume bottle.

He asks, wondering if he wants to know her answer. "Why do they have to fall in love with you?"

Sondra turns around. "Tamal! Trust me, I don't want those pathetic boys to _fall_ in _love_ with me. They just need to think they love me for our plan to work. I am not thrilled on the idea, but how else will they become of use to us?"

He doesn't look convinced. She continues, "I won't be leading them on more than is necessary, if that's what you're worried about."

"I trust you, I do." Tamal objects.

"I'm detecting otherwise."

"I hate the idea of our enemy loving one of us. All of us do."

She stands right in front of him and her eyes are piercing. She is serious, extremely serious. "I know. Once we are through with them, they receive the same fate as our warlock."

Sondra goes back to the table and places the perfume bottle in a bag.

"Now, I need to get back. In a few days, we will get you a new soul."

* * *

**Really, another cliffhanger? Yes, another cliffhanger.  
**

**I just wanted to let everyone know that StrangeMindEnigma (SME), one of the writers of Out of the Darkness, is going to have her profile created either today or some time soon. Check her out when her profile is up, she is a great writer. Also, don't forget to either review this story or send me a PM.  
**

**Until next Monday, enjoy this chapter.**


	6. Sugar, Spice, and Everything Nice

**Happy Mon...wait. *Checks calendar.* Oh, it's Tuesday. Well, I still hope you enjoy this chapter.  
**

* * *

_I don't know what I got myself into this summer. After hearing what happened during this school year…I, I'm not sure what came over me. These people are after power and their tactics are…dare I say, amazing. They are so advanced and smart, it's unfathomable._

_Sondra is the most impressive. She is able to have her disguise come on and off like a light switch. How can she go from devious to friendly so smoothly? I prefer her friendly side, of course. _

* * *

Timmy is sitting at a square table inside of Sondra's dorm. In his hand, he holds a tea cup. He looked around curiously. He didn't picture so many books and papers; it reminded him of his section of the dorm. He found the aura strange, though. It wasn't as comfortable as the aura in the rest of the school.

He figured it might just be the stress Sondra is under. All of the teachers were dealing with it much more than the students were.

Sondra comes to him with a tea pot and he lifts his cup to the spout. He noticed something, she smelt of orange spice. A strong orange spice; it was nice. She puts the pot away and sits across from him.

"So, Sondra, where are you from?" Timmy asked curiously.

She takes a drink of tea. "What do you mean?"

"Well," he starts, "you have a British accent. The only time you were on Earth was for your old job, which wasn't in England. You couldn't be from Earth, then. British accents are predominant on Zenith, though, are you from there?"

"No, my parents are from Zenith, but we lived on Kathlyn."

"Kathlyn? The realm famous for their mythical monsters?"

She laughs. "They are rare now. They were more around during the beginning of time. We're more known for literature, now."

Timmy nods and sips his tea.

Sondra brings up, "That study you have been following, what's the update?"

"Oh, yeah, well…they realized that it is predominantly men who wind up being born without magic. You see…"

She stopped listening when he went into his long explanation. She had to figure out how to get him on her side. Manipulate him, for the lack of a better word. She knew he was the outcast of his friends. He was always the logical one of the bunch.

Sondra had an idea, "You know, Timmy, you are very smart. That can come very handy in a battle."

"Really?"

"Really." She gives him a friendly smile.

They are both silent, thinking about what to say or to say anything at all.

Timmy felt a tingle inside of his stomach. He puts it in the back of his mind.

Sondra questions, "Have you ever tried to plan a strategy before?"

"I have." He nods, focusing on the liquid in his cup. "They don't listen to them, though. They usually do what's on the top of their head. Whatever they feel, they do."

"Uh huh…" She trails off. "Having a tactical plan is very important in a fight. In fact, that's what we advanced warriors focus on."

Timmy looks back up. He didn't know that warriors, more advanced of course, focused on planning. He just needed to figure out how to get them to listen.

"Your friends…seem to be caught up in themselves." Sondra adds, "They seem to disregard everything you have to say whether it's about a battle or…though I'm not part of the circle. It just seems like you're not appreciated by anyone."

"No, don't worry." He assures her. In his mind, though, he agreed with her.

There was that feeling again. Timmy feels the strange tingle back in his stomach as he smells more of the orange spice. Could it be the friendship between him and Sondra growing? No, that couldn't be it, he never felt it with his other friendships. Maybe it was the fact he hasn't heard from Tecna in a while. All he knew was that he needed to walk around.

"Would you like more tea?" Sondra asked as she got up to get the pot.

"Um," Timmy clears his throat, "no. I'm good, I just need to go."

He heads straight for the door without saying goodbye.

Sondra gets a confused look upon her face. "Ok, see you around."

She puts down the pot and taps her foot. "Guess that worked."

* * *

_See, friendly. Who doesn't like friendly? Except for witches, the Trix, the Wizards of the…you know what, never mind. I do feel bad for Uncle Timmy. Who likes to be unappreciated? I know I don't. I know someone else who used to feel unappreciated. _

* * *

Bloom stood on the balcony outside of the dorm. She had her elbows on the railing and just looked out onto the campus. She looked over at a table with a black haired and a teal haired student. They were two of Mirta's roommates.

Mirta, she was still trying to wrap her head around it. She tapped her fingers together and turned her head to view the rest of the campus. Everything seemed calm. It felt unusual to her.

Right underneath the balcony was a group of people laughing. It was her friends. They decided to go hang out on the campus, but Bloom declined. She wanted time to think and understand the events of the year. She could not stop wondering who/where the enemy is/was.

Her train of thought stops when she jumps. She felt a hand on her shoulder; it was Sky.

"Oh, it's just you." Bloom states with a sigh of relief.

He smiles as he rubs her back briefly. "Yeah, don't worry. How have things been?"

"They've been…ok. You?"

He kisses her cheek. "Same."

They both look over the balcony. It was such a beautiful day. The sun was bright, the sky was clear, and there was a cool breeze.

They were both quiet. They usually didn't need to speak when they were with each other. All they needed was each other's presence. Something was off, though. This time, it felt awkward to be silent. Someone needed to say something.

Sky takes a deep breath. "I heard about Mirta."

She moves her head slightly. "Flora's taking it pretty hard; we all are. It's just…a strange year." She turns to face him.

"It really is. I think this is the first Red Fountain has had a female instructor." Sky leans onto the railing.

"It is?"

He confirms. "According to the books at Red Fountain."

"That's…interesting." She goes back to thinking. "It's strange that we never saw the enemy. Not even once."

Sky has a short laugh. "You've noticed that, too."

She goes on a rant, "Now Mirta's gone, we're teachers, new mentors, and two weddings being planned."

"It's going to be a hectic year." He agrees.

Bloom bites her lip as she looks back over the balcony.

She pauses before she says anything. "Speaking of weddings…"

"Let me guess." Sky interrupts, "You're postponing the wedding, _again_."

She gets a look of disappointment as she nods.

"For how long?" Sky crosses his arms. He now has an angry tone as he speaks. "Till the end of the school year?"

"More like…indefinitely."

"Indefinitely!" His jaw drops. "Bloom, we've postponed the wedding enough, don't you think? We've been engaged for how long, now."

Bloom is flabbergasted. "I…I just want to wait until we're done fighting villains."

"We're never going to be done fighting villains." Sky speaks each word slower than the last.

He cuffs her face in his hands.

"Sky, don't worry. We're going to be done with school and villains, then get married. We'll have kids, or kid, and live the rest of our lives without issue."

He sighs. "Unfortunately, it's not that simple. No matter what, though, we will live happily together."

"Sky…"

He quiets her and holds her. "We'll discuss it later. Hopefully we won't postpone again."

She throws his hands off. "Fine! You want to destroy our future, go right on ahead."

"Wha…Bloom. Come back." Sky takes deep breathes. He enters the dorm room.

"No! If you want rush the perfect wedding…"

Sky speaks calmly, "I don't want to rush the wedding. I'm just saying the decisions can't be one-sided."

"You think this is one-sided?" Bloom crosses her arms.

"Well…it doesn't feel like my thoughts are being considered."

She snaps once again, "Well, maybe, I don't think I can trust you with making decisions."

They go on like that for the rest of the time he is there.

* * *

_And did they argue. From what I heard, people were happy they weren't anywhere near them. They, of course, made up.  
_

_They weren't the only ones to fight that day, though. There was another fight at Red Fountain and as I recall, it wasn't pretty. Is any fight pretty?  
_

* * *

In one of the corridors of Red Fountain, two students are in a brawl. They were throwing punches left and right; both of them dodging every other one. There was pushing and shoving, kicks and swipes, and name calling.

There was a group of students around the brawlers that watched them fight. It was a vicious fight; neither student was going to stand down. It continued on until Codatorta and Riven came across the scene.

They were exiting the teachers' lounge and were discussing the unseen enemy. That was the only thing people could talk about, really. It was the talk of the schools.

When they arrived at the scene, Riven grabbed one of the students to pull them back. The student fought back and punched him in the eye. Even when he wasn't involved in a fight, he would get hurt some way. Codatorta eventually got in the middle to separate the two.

"Alright! Stop it, both of you!" Codatorta had such a booming voice when he spoke. It made students' veins freeze.

He continues, "You all know that it is against school policy to start a fight! We do not condone violence that is purposely intended for one another. You are Red Fountain students. Act like it!"

He points his attention to the two students. "Detention! For a week!"

Everyone is stays frozen until he leaves. Everyone leaves, including the students in the fight. Riven follows one of them and tries to stop them.

The student had shoulder length brown hair and the same build as Riven. He had light grey eyes that showed a mixture of sadness and anger.

"What was that, Grey?" Riven interrogates as he catches up.

Grey glances at him. "It's nothing. And my name's not Grey, it's Dave."

"You've been Grey ever since you joined the school." He pulls Grey's shoulder so they are face to face. It causes Grey to hit the wall. "Now, what's going on?"

"It's none of your business." He pushes Riven and leaves. "Go bother someone, else."

Riven turns around and heads to his dorm. He was officially in a sour mood for the rest of the day. Anyone who gets in his way better watch out.

* * *

**Hmm...why would Grey cause a fight? More importantly, who is Grey? Your going to have to stick around to find out.**

**Please remember, don't be shy. Just click on the review and/or PM button and tell me what you think. What you like, dislike, or both. **

**Until the next chapter, enjoy this one.  
**


	7. Back to the Past

_Whatever plan they have, their process is slow, but efficient. They seem to have every detail figured out and are giving great attention to them. They know exactly what they need to do, when to do it, and how to do it__.__ They have genius tactics and know how to target a person's weakness. _

_For example… _

* * *

The Specialists, Sondra, and their students were in the gym room. The students were sitting on the red mat, the Specialists in a line, and Sondra between them all. She was explaining today's activities to the class.

Her voice was soft, but loud as she spoke. "Today, you boys will be separated into groups. Each group having one of our male instructors as the leader; all based on body build. You will fight within your group for fifteen minutes. You will primarily fight with your classmates. There will be some who will fight the leader. After the fifteen minutes are up, you will switch. Fight based on what you already know and were taught."

The Specialists walk to their sections and wait for Sondra to send the students away.

A student speaks in a low voice. "Like Timmy's hard to beat."

Sondra could clearly hear him. "Is there an issue, Mr. Turner?"

"Yes, how is such a scrawny guy good enough to train us? Attend this school, nevertheless."

She crosses her arms as there are whispers throughout the room. "You'll find out soon because you're going to the 'scrawny' group."

One by one, she goes on to send everyone to their respective groups.

Once everyone is separated, they start striking. As their time ticks away, Sondra examines each group thoroughly. She examines each move everyone makes with a keen eye. Sondra studied every punch, kick, and block. Everyone seemed to be doing well.

When she gets to the Timmy's group, she gets elbowed by him. Instantly sharp pain runs through her side and she lets out a groan. She tries to sooth the area, but it doesn't help.

"Switch!" She calls after checking the time. It's not hard to yell, she needed to. Sondra tries to forget about the pain, she starts thinking about how else to grow Timmy's friendship. She needed to target a weak point and turn it into a strength. What was a weakness of his? She had to think back. Think back to when the research began years ago.

* * *

She was sitting at a large round table in a huge room filled with them. Sondra was the only one there and it was night. There were few windows in the room, just enough for it all to be lit by sunlight. The walls were made of stone and the floor was concrete.

There was a stage behind her. It was the full width of the room, but didn't cover a quarter of the room in length. There were two double-doors, one for entrances and the other for exits. It didn't matter which one you would use, though.

Everything was quiet. Sondra was just reading file after file. She had been going through them thoroughly all day long. She soon heard footsteps echoing in the room. She looks up and sees a woman. The woman had purple hair and was much more colorful compared to her. In her hand was another file.

"Took you long enough." Sondra states the words coldly without taking one glance.

The woman hands over the file. Her nose ring moved as she spoke. "It's not easy getting back from the Magic Dimension anymore."

"I know, Camilla." She agrees. "We didn't deserve to be blocked from them."

Camilla nods. "What have you learned, so far?"

"Well," Sondra puts down the file. "Prince Sky and his squire, Brandon, will switch identities for the upcoming school year…"

"Again?" The other woman asks.

The dark blonde continues. "Helia goes to some sort of art school, _but_ his uncle is trying to convince him to attend Red Fountain. They both agreed one more year and then he _must_ attend."

She snorts, "You should've seen her when she came in."

Camilla joins in on her laugh. It was the most amusing thing they both thought about that day.

When they were done, Sondra continues informing her. "Next is Riven. He is already has a 'bad boy' persona, so not much work is needed to turn him…evil. Nabu is still on Andros and though he already has magic, we need it adjusted. I just need to read Timmy's file, now."

"Yeah, speaking of Timmy, I would have preferred it if I didn't have to date him."

"We all need to make sacrifices if we want our power back."

She skims the file causing both women to become silent.

Sondra glances up, "It says here that he is very insecure about being a warrior."

Camilla nods in confirmation.

"Send out a memo about a meeting in here, Ambrosine Hall." Sondra commands. "We will, also, need monitors so the other three academies can watch, too."

* * *

She looks back down at her side; a plan popped into her head. She looks back at his section and sees that because of the switch, he is now fighting a student much larger than him. The student, Mike, had huge arms and broad shoulder. Just his one leg was bigger than Timmy's two legs combined. She had to make sure the plan worked. She jumped into action.

"Pause." Sondra commands as she put a hand on Timmy's shoulder.

They both look at her stunned.

"Timmy, I want to show you a new technique." Sondra calls over the opponent. "Mike, come closer."

They both look at her with curious eyes.

"Now," the warrior starts explaining, "let's say Timmy lunges at you. You would stop him like this."

Mike wraps his arms around Timmy's torso. This causes his arms to be behind Mike.

Sondra walks around. "You are trapped. You can't do anything to Mike in this hold. Wrong. Timmy, I want you to take your elbow and hit him right in this spot."

She points the spot out and he looks back at her.

"Wouldn't that hurt?" Timmy questions.

"That's the whole purpose. Would it matter if it were an enemy?"

He sighs and jabs Mike in the side. To his shock, his elbow doesn't fling back from the hit. It does turn red, though, from the impact. The wind gets knocked out of Mike, but he doesn't lose hold. He just starts breathing heavier. Timmy could feel that his hold became weaker. Maybe he could just leave the hold and not do anymore hurt.

"Knee him." She commands.

The two warriors become wide eyed. "What?"

"Knee him!"

He hesitates, but does as she says. His knee flings up and connects with Mike's body. He cringes when he realizes that he should have aimed for his gut. Mike instantly lets go when the pain surges through him. He is in serious pain; he wasn't the only person to feel it. It made everyone cringe to see the sight. He drops to his knees and soon falls to his side. It was excruciating pain, something he never felt before. Sondra, though, just smiles.

"Let this be a note: When you are a skinny person, your elbows and knees are your best weapon."

Sondra walks over to Mike and pats him on the back. She leads him out of the room.

She speaks in a soothing voice. "Come on, let's go get an ice pack for you."

He just groans, "Please don't let that happen again."

She pats his shoulder and they exit. The class goes back to fighting and they try to forget what happened to their fellow classmate.

* * *

_Ouch! I'm a girl and just writing that hurt._

_That wasn't the only thing that packed a punch that day. You remember Grey? Well, when detention was finished, a certain Specialist came by to interrogate him…again. _

* * *

Grey sat at a round table all by himself. The guy he fought with, Jessie, was at the opposite side of the room. Their detention was held in the teachers' lounge while a meeting was held in the room usually used for detention. They had spent the past hour in there. It would have been less torturous if it weren't for Codatorta giving them menacing looks the whole time.

Eventually, he left the room stating, "Time."

The two students get up and start leaving. Grey stops, though, when Riven enters. He knew he would be interrogated once again.

"What do you want?" He gritted through his teeth.

Riven crossed his arms. "Why were you involved in the fight?"

"I don't want to talk about it." He tries to leave only to have Riven stop him.

"You don't just go around picking fights." Riven objects.

Grey gives him a confused look. "Since when were you against fights?"

"Apparently I forgot to put the emphasis on 'you'. _You_, Grey, don't go around picking fights. What happened?"

"It's a long story." Grey tries to leave, again.

The persistent specialist pushes him back, "I have time."

"I don't."

"Make time."

"Can't make me make time."

They both stand in silence, each one waiting for the other to break.

Grey admits, "I'm going to miss class."

"You'll have a nurse's note." Riven fires back. He is determined to figure out Grey's meaning behind the fight.

"Why would I have a nurse's note?" He questions.

"For the injury you're going to get if you don't start talking."

Grey takes a long deep breath, an agitated one. Why even bother with arguing?

"He talked about my sister."

Riven waits to hear more, but doesn't. "That's it?"

"He called her 'weak' and 'useless'." His fists close and his face turns bright red.

"Jessie's a jerk. He may be a bigger jerk than _me_."

Grey slams his hand on the closest surface, trying not to punch anything or anyone. "You don't…you don't get it. My sister is in physical therapy because of that attack last year! And he has the nerve to call her weak when _she_ saved _him_. She is a hero!" He tries to calm down.

"Jenny got hurt?" Riven questions. He couldn't believe that she could be in physical therapy.

"Badly, and it's all because of him."

"What happened?"

Grey takes and seat and Riven follows. "Me and Jessie went to Alfea. It was Jenny's birthday and I wanted to surprise her. The sky was clear, but it quickly became cloudy."

* * *

We were walking up to her and her friends, helmets in hand. The wind started picking up. When it blew, it was loud. Like a siren warning us of danger.

Jenny had welcomed us with warm hugs and smiles. She was a ray of sunshine under the dark sky.

Everything was fine until I saw a man in dark clothing come out of the woods. He was a distance away, so I couldn't make out what he looked like. I saw an object in his hand though, a sword I believe. That's when I knew something was wrong.

He shouted, but the winds were blowing hard. I couldn't understand him. I believe it was "Charge!" It could have been a scream. Either way, it was the call for them to attack.

Within minutes, there were hundreds of fighters. Some were warriors. Others were witches and warlocks. It was a scary scene, but I had that instinct to fight back. It is what I'm trained to do and it's in my blood. Both me and Jessie instantly pulled out our swords and were prepared to protect the girls.

The first guy I fought went down fairly easily, but the second guy…he was tough. He was using techniques I've never seen before. Eventually he went down, too. I fought one after another; each one harder than the last. I still find it amazing I made it out just fine.

Jenny wasn't so lucky.

There was one point where Jessie got ganged up on by a warlock and witch. He was using his sword to block their magic, but it got knocked out if his hand. The two magical beings were forming a conjoined magic sphere to throw at him. When they threw it, though, Jenny jumped in front of him.

I could tell it weakened her. I couldn't stand seeing her lying on the ground in pain. She tried multiple times to get up, but it was hard. When I was done fighting, I was able to come help her up. She still insisted on fighting, though. The next warrior that came our way was the one who broke her leg.

I, being her big brother, carried her to the school for safety. Right when I was about to reach safety, we heard a shout. It was the same guy I first saw from the woods. This time I could hear him clearly.

He shouted, "Halt!"

I would have stayed around to find out what happens, but I wanted my sister to be safe. From what I heard, they all just left.

* * *

They are both silent. Riven didn't know what to say after hearing all of that.

"Um…" He tries to find the right words. "She is brave."

Grey nods. "Yeah, she is."

He gets up and leaves the room. After hearing that story, Riven has a new hatred towards Jessie.


End file.
